PETA Files Complaint in Behalf of Injured Dolphin at SeaWorld

Does this sound like déjà vu to you? A weekend visitor to SeaWorld in San Antonio has sent PETA disturbing photographs of a dolphin who appears to be missing a chunk of flesh from his or her lower mandible. The injury is strikingly similar to the one sustained by an orca named Nakai at the San Diego SeaWorld just a few months ago. Just as we did for Nakai, PETA has filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and requested an investigation into the cause of the dolphin’s injury.

In Nakai’s case, the USDA listed the orca’s injury as being caused by a recessed track that holds gates that separate two of the tanks. Another injury to another animal, also caused by SeaWorld’s dangerous enclosures, would demonstrate a clear violation of the Animal Welfare Act, which states that facilities must be structurally sound and free from objects, projections, or edges that may cause injury and that all animals must be handled in a manner that does not cause physical harm.

And SeaWorld sentences animals to an early grave: Orcas, for instance, can expect to live an average of 30 to 50 years in the wild, and some live as long as 90 years. The median age for orcas in captivity is only 9 years. The debilitating stress of captivity weakens the animals’ immune systems. In fact, some other weekend visitors to SeaWorld San Antonio reportedly told employees about a shark who was lying belly-up in a tank and appeared to be dead.

Porpoises and whales are some of the most brilliant, beautiful, and stunning animals we are more than lucky to share this world with. Please stop hurting and abusing them and leave them alone in their natural habitat!

This photo is very disturbing to see, nobody goes to Sea World expecting to see an injured animal in an already caged world. It’s heartbreaking that these poor animals are dragged away from their homes and are being abused for entertainment. I encourage that you regularly bring in a vet to check up on them every now and then to make sure they are taken care of.

Help tiger cubs forced to swim + used as selfie props. Tell Dade City’s Wild Things that cubs belong with their mothers!

Almost all of us grew up eating meat, wearing leather, and going to circuses and zoos. We never considered the impact of these actions on the animals involved. For whatever reason, you are now asking the question: Why should animals have rights? Read more.